Torn From Stone (The Phoenix Series Book 1)

by Sarah Rockwood

  “You cannot be serious! After the display, we’ve just witnessed…”

  “Silence!” bellowed Windiga. “We have had enough from you.” Cosima fell silent.

  “Answer me Phoenix.” The Archer spoke calmly.

  “I wish to help those I Watch.” A tear of memory rolled down my cheek. “I cannot bear witness and do nothing.” Tears flowed freely down my face as the memory of the tortured women flowed through my mind.

  “Have you tried?” asked Silverwood.

  “No.” I lied.

  “Good.” His relief drew a sigh from the branches above his head. “That is an ancient law that will not be changed, Phoenix. To go against it is to go against The Guard and that would mean your banishment. You don’t want that, do you?”

  “Banishment?” I was shocked. “I have never heard of any in The Void being Banished.”

  “We have never had to.” He stared at me, and I did not look away. Some of the sadness seemed to have left his eyes. They almost glittered. Perhaps my power had given him something. “Hopefully that will not change.” I looked away, and he took it as an answer and smiled. “Then it’s settled.”

  “There is still the matter of our Secret.” Ganaraj was sitting up straight, his legs dangling over the edge of the dais.

  “I will keep your Secret.”

  “Yes, you will. The Archer will see to that,” said Windiga.

  “I think…” chimed Mastyx. “that she should not Travel for a while. That little display of power, which we are so carefully not discussing…” He smiled wickedly at the other Guards; some shifted uncomfortably in the seats. “…Coupled with her request is troubling. Perhaps some time Bound to the Ground is necessary.”

  “Please, no!” I rushed to my feet, my wings beating to help the movement.

  To be Bound to the Ground meant exactly that. I would not be able to Travel or fly, a part of my body always in contact with the ground. Only an act of extreme power would make Travel possible, and such an act would bring The Guard with an even harsher punishment.

  “Please, Guard, please! It is not necessary! I will keep your Secret!”

  “Mastyx is right. Although her swell of power tasted unfocused, it was still impressive. Even now I can feel it swirling below her surface.” said Ganaraj.

  “A vote will make it official.” crooned Mastyx.

  “Then we vote.” Silverwood sighed; the light in his eyes had dimmed again. “All in favour.” Six green balls of light moved into the air. They formed a ring around me. “It is done.” Silverwood sank back into his chair as much as his course flesh would allow, his branches trembling as he moved. “Archer, her silence and the Binding.”

  The Archer nodded and in one fluid movement leapt from his dais to land beside me. The judgment was final, and there was no escape from The Guard. I collapsed to my knees and folded my wings behind me. The Archer crossed his arms and drove his hands into his flesh. It gave like butter, and I watched as The Archer, digging with his fingers, pulled two ribs from his body. I heard them crack as he pulled them free of the flesh leaving ragged holes in their wake. The wounds bled thickly but in an instant were healed.

  “For how long?” I whispered. No one answered.

  The Archer stood in front of me, a piece of bone in each hand. When I made no move to stand, he dropped to his knees. We stared at each other. I had never been this close to the Archer. A pulse of energy crackled between the open plain of our bodies. His eyes widened.

  “Hurry up, Archer.” hissed Mastyx.

  He placed a piece of bone on each of my temples. The moment they touched my flesh I started to feel cold. I felt my wings go limp at my back. The silver in his eyes grew brighter as my world went black.

  13

  I opened my eyes and found myself back in Noiryn’s cave. My hands left the wing.

  “Noiryn?” She let out a yelp.

  “Phoenix? Are you okay?”

  “How long was I out?”

  “Out?” She was halfway across the room but hurried back to kneel beside me. “Out? Phoenix, I’ve barely made it across the room!” I let the knowledge sink in.

  “So it was instant,” I spoke the words softly as I watched the fish swim in the clear blue water in front of the cave.

  “Instant?... So you had a vision?” Noiryn asked, then as an afterthought she said. “That was fast.”

  “No shit.” I started laughing, a full-throated sound. As the horrific parts of the memory came flooding back, my mirth gave way to tears. As I sobbed, Noiryn slid her arms around me, resting her face on my shoulder where my wing would have been.

  “We live for so long, Watching all the time, the things we see can break you if you let them.” There was sorrow in her words and an emptiness that brought another image to my mind.

  “I healed you.” She stiffened.

  “Yes.”

  I pulled from her embrace and took her face gently in my hands mirroring the memory.

  “The wound was so deep; it took so much power to heal it. How did it happen?”

  As I held her a single tear rolled from her third eye. I leant towards her and wiped it away with my lips. She sighed and sagged into me, but the eye remained closed. Her body was limp, but her voice strained, the words sharp.

  “You don’t remember?” Noiryn asked.

  “No, I’m sorry.”

  She sighed darkly.

  “I was trying to help some whales. Fishermen had harpoons. They were shooting at them. I was swimming amongst them. The harpoon cut across my back and into a whale. I wanted to do more, but I was losing a lot of blood. I woke up in The Void, and you were there.” Her voice relaxed. “Thank you.”

  Noiryn smiled broadly at me, and her third eye blinked. The two that remained open were full of gratitude and devotion. It had been hard for her to tell me that story, even with omissions, but now she had such joy on her face. I couldn’t bring myself to ask about the golden rope I had unwound from her throat. I had seen the vision, and although I knew I really was Phoenix, as these Travellers had known her, I hadn’t totally embraced it. But I would try. I kissed her on the cheek and pulled away. Her arms trailed after me.

  “No thanks necessary.” I got to my feet and began to pace. “I have some questions, Noiryn.”

  “Ask me anything.” She was still smiling.

  “In the worlds we Travel to…” She nodded. “If they don’t know we’re there how did you get hurt?”

  “We are only invisible to them. We still can feel the happenings of their world and be affected by them. We are powerful creatures though, so most of the time our gifts keep us from injury.”

  ”Can you clarify that?”

  “If I touch the whales they sense a slight pressure or presence but do not see me. If I swim near their tails as they swing, I will be moved by the current, unless I use my power to stabilise.”

  “Oh... So the blood…” I continued the thought silently. The blood I had felt against my hands, had splattered across my face in that terrible place, was not my imagination.

  “Blood… What blood?” Noiryn looked scared.

  “Don’t worry; it wasn’t mine.” I squashed the memory down.

  “Did you see why they forced you out?” Noiryn asked cautiously.

  I assumed from the memory it had to do with my meeting with The Guard, but I couldn’t be certain. In the visions I was sure that my healing was secret, but The Archer seemed to suspect something. Until I knew more, I decided to keep it to myself.

  “No. I didn’t get the whole story. I think I have to find the other wing for all the pieces to this puzzle.” I sat down on the cushions. “But I don’t know where to look.”

  “I know.”

  “What!” I must have looked frantic because she scrambled away from me.

  “Not where specifically but I know who does. Sid told me after you touched the wing to take you to Benyst. He knows where the second wing is.” She looked pleadingly at me.

  “Sid knew we wo
uld be separated?”

  “He had his suspicions.”

  I turned away from her. The wing lay between us. After seeing The Guard, I knew they could be harsh. I was so worried about Sid. I didn’t think they would physically harm him and Yeren, but I was worried they would put enchantments on them I couldn’t break. Hell, I didn’t even know how I broke the whole ‘Bound to the Ground’ thing they put on me. The wing hadn’t coughed up that particular memory.

  “Phoenix?” Noiryn had crawled closer.

  “I’m okay, Noiryn,” I touched her arm, and she relaxed. “Just worried about Sid and Yeren.” Involuntarily my touch became a caress, a spark of power flared in my hand. I had just become aware of it when my stomach growled loudly. I broke away. “And hungry by the sound of things!” We both laughed, breaking the tension.

  “I’ll make dinner!”

  Before I could comment that I didn’t know what time it was let alone what meal I ‘should’ be having, Noiryn was on her feet. She made a few long strides towards the water and then dived through the film of power that held it back. Once on the other side her quills shot out of her back and, acting as a dorsal fin, helped her slice through the water. She was more graceful than a dancer. She moved like lightening through the schools of fish. I could barely track the movement of her hands as she plucked fish from their schools. Within minutes she had enough and dived back through the field of power. She tucked into a roll as she did it, her spines retracting as she rolled over her back and then on to her feet. She turned to me with a huge smile on her lipless face, a giant fish in each hand.

  “Wow.” I was stunned.

  “Thank you.” She bowed and went to the kitchen area of the cave.

  It didn’t take long for her to prepare the fish. She cooked it and a few vegetables on a small grill she kept at the back of the cave. I didn’t feel like talking during dinner, so I asked her questions about the water. It didn’t take long to get her going on a long story about following migrating whales. She also told me a great deal about sharks. Apparently, it’s hard to swim with them, which seemed obvious to me, but she explained further. Because they are such an old species they can sometimes see Travellers and, naturally, want to eat them. Yet another reason to be afraid of sharks. By the end of her story, I had cleaned my plate and set the empty dish down beside me.

  “You look tired,” Noiryn observed.

  “I am tired.” I let out a huge yawn.

  “Then let us sleep and when we wake I will take you to Benyst.”

  “Okay.” I wanted to know more about this guy but was too tired to question her. I yawned again, groaned, and got to my feet. I stretched my arms high over my head and tried to work the fatigue from my back. I could feel Noiryn’s eyes on me. When I looked down at her, the third eye was blinking but still did not stay open. She blushed a light blue and dropped her eyes.

  I began the delicate process of wiggling the wing back into the sac without touching it. I had a feeling that would bring more visions, and I needed a good night’s sleep before I did that again. Once the wing was inside, I tucked the sack back in my tote. I turned around to find Noiryn standing behind me. We stared at each other.

  “You can take the bed.” Noiryn’s voice was hushed.

  “Where will you sleep?”

  “I…”

  She looked so beautiful; her scales gleamed in the candlelight and, as she cast about for an answer, I felt power rise in me like it had in the cave with Yeren. I closed the distance between us and cupped her neck in my hand. I could see the golden cord in my mind’s eye. She closed her eyes as I slid my hand across her shoulder and down her arm, taking her hand. I led her to steps before the bed and drew her up behind me, the warm pulse of power moving through my body into her hand as we climbed. I went to my knees and brought her down beside me. We settled into the cushions, her back pressed to my chest with my arms around her. The nubs of her quills felt very present against the patches of skin my jumpsuit left bare. I brushed my lips along her neck, and she nuzzled into me. I shifted my arm and brought the full length of our bodies closer together. The contact created a comforting wave of energy that flowed slowly up and down our bodies. Noiryn sighed.

  “Goodnight, Noiryn.”

  “Sleep well, Phoenix.”

  I was asleep in minutes.

  14

  I awoke on my back, looking up at the dancing light on the roof of the cave. The curtains were open and the sun was rippling through the water to create the beautiful images above me. We had moved in the night. Noiryn now slept on my stomach, her head nestled just below my breasts, her arm draped around my waist. I lay there for a moment, peaceful. There was a time when waking up like this with anyone, let alone a being with three eyes, would have sent me dashing from the room. But today it felt good. The curve of her body wrapped around me, trusting me, seemed natural. I didn’t know who I had been to her, to all the people I had known in The Void, and as I watched her back rise and fall with her breath, I knew that I had to get to the bottom of this. The wing had more to show me. I could feel it like a faraway voice in the back of my head. I would find its twin, and I would go back to The Guard. Maybe the old Phoenix just did what The Guard said, but this Phoenix, me, had lived in the real world. And in the real world, you don’t just roll over and do whatever people tell you to do. That thought brought a lot of anger with it. Cold, hard anger, the type that makes you get in a guy’s face even though he’s twice your size. An image of a sword went through my mind and with it a quick kick of raw power. Noiryn sat up.

  “Phoenix?”

  “Sorry, Noiryn.” I sat up beside her. “Power flare.” I ran my hands vigorously over my face trying to dissipate the crackling feeling.

  “They’ll probably be hard to control for a while. Maybe both wings will help.”

  She put a hand on my shoulder. I could feel my power stir at her touch. I scooted away from her as casually and as quickly I could.

  “Yeah… So let’s go talk to Benyst.” I got to the edge of the bed and, ignoring the steps, dropped to the floor. I went to my stuff and started pulling on my boots.

  “Do you want something to eat before you go?” Noiryn was getting slowly from the bed. Her words got my attention.

  “What do you mean ‘before you go’? You’re not coming with me?” She had come down from the bed and was taking sad, languid, strides across the room.

  “I’ll help you Travel to his world… then I’ll have to leave you…” She continued pacing around the cave. “I have trouble being away from the water, from my cave.” She had made her way to the wall of water. “Besides, Benyst scares me.” She trailed fingers across the water, sending ripples along its surface. “I’m sorry.”

  The memory of Healing her blazed through my mind. She had been so helpless, so needy. I had felt her sadness under my hands. Last night I knew how much comfort it had brought her to lie beside me, to feel safe and protected. Even if I still had no idea what I was doing, looking at her standing there with the light of the ocean playing across her sad face, I knew I had to go alone. Even someone as exotic and amazing as Noiryn could be paralysed by her fears.

  “Hey…” I crossed to her. “Don’t worry about it. You’ve done so much for me already.” I put a hand on her shoulder, and she turned quickly and slid into an embrace.

  “I am not as strong as you, Phoenix.” She whispered into my hair. Warm power grew in my belly, strengthening me.

  “I’m not so much strong as ignorant. Hard to feel scared when you don’t know what’s going on.” I rubbed her back.

  “You sell yourself low, Phoenix. When you find all your pieces, you will know.”

  “I don’t know Noiryn…” The power had responded to her words and fanned out into my limbs, calming me. I pulled back and looked her in the eye. “I could never swim with sharks.”

  “Well, wings aren’t made for water.” She pulled away, laughing. “Before you go I will prepare some more supplies for you.” She went to the ta
ble at the back of the cave and began placing food in a bag.

  “Where am I going exactly?”

  “Benyst lives deep in the jungle of the Congo, I’m not sure exactly where, but deep.” She took the small bag, now full of food, across the room and loaded it into my tote. “There is a waterfall nearby. That is where we will Travel to, from there you will have to walk. Do you have a lantern?”

  I had been busy picturing hiking through the jungle by myself and missed the question.

  “Sorry?”

  “A lantern? Do you have one?”

  “No, Sid was handling that.” We both paused for a moment, worrying about our friends.

  “I have one you can have.” She pulled it from a cubby built into the bed riser. “Okay…” She blew on it sending a cloud of dust glittering through the air. “Let me show you how it works.”

  I crossed the cave to get a better look at the lamp. It was strange and beautiful just like Noiryn. It was about twelve inches high and maybe five inches in diameter. It had a curving handle from which the body of the lamp hung. The handle, top, and base of the lamp were all made of brass and engraved in a similar fashion to Windiga’s plates. The brass was quite tarnished, but the markings were still clear. Three small feet protruded from the base of the lamp, they were carved in the image of small webbed toes and allowed for a few inches of space between the bottom of the lamp and the surface on which it was placed. The main body was a fantastic glass cylinder. One side was fabricated from strips of sea-coloured glass layered like a barber’s pole; the other was an intricate pattern of interlocking swirls. The blues and greens of the glass looked striking moving in and out of each other. I knew when the lamp was lit it would look sensational.

  “Noiryn, it’s beautiful! I can’t take this with me.”

  “Oh don’t worry, it’s tougher than it looks.” She swung the lamp by its handle, letting the cave light play on the glass. “This lamp has seen many things.” She said absently. Then coming back to herself she added. “It doesn’t need oil or flame and will work under water.” She handed me the lamp.